Higher poultry consumption was associated with an earlier age at menarche

Abstract

Aim To examine the association between meat consumption and earlier age of menarche among schoolgirls in Shanghai. Methods The study randomly selected 1981 schoolgirls aged 6–18 years in Shanghai using a two‐stage random sampling design. Information on meat intake was collected using a semi‐quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Menarche age, household income, physical activity, and other covariates were obtained by standardized questionnaires. Logistic regression was used to analyze the association between intake of meat and earlier age of menarche. Earlier age of menarche was defined as first menstruation before 12 years of age. Results Among the 986 girls who had experienced menarche, 518/986 (52.5%) had earlier age of menarche. After adjusting for body mass index, age, physical activity, sleep, household income, and parental education, consumption of poultry was positively associated with risk of earlier age of menarche (p‐trend=0.03). Girls who never consumed poultry had a lower risk of earlier age of menarche (odds ratio [OR]: 0.61, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.39–0.96). Neither the consumption of pork, beef, lamb, processed meat nor total meat consumption was associated with menarche age. Conclusion Higher consumption of poultry was associated with an earlier age at menarche.